Electronic clinical thermometers of a known type such that a user is notified of completion of thermometry are described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 11-304597, 8-304189, 8-136354, etc., for example. These electronic clinical thermometers require a vibration generator for generating vibration and an operation switch for turning on and off power supply to the vibration generator, in addition to a temperature measuring element for detecting temperature and a display device for displaying the measured temperature.
Incidentally, power that is required by the drive of the vibration generator is so high that vibration of the vibration generator must be transmitted as efficiently as possible to a user's hand that holds the clinical thermometer. It is to be required that the display device be located in position where a user can see it easily when the user holds the clinical thermometer in his/her most natural posture, that a source of vibration (vibration generator) be located near the user's hand (including its fingers), and that the operation switch for turning on and off the power supply to the vibration generator be situated in an easily operable position (e.g., corresponding to the user's thumb). However, none of the aforementioned prior arts fulfill these requirements. More specifically, in the clinical thermometer described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-304597, as shown in FIG. 10, a vibration generator 22 and a display device 23 are arranged in front (on the side of a temperature measuring element 21) and in back with respect to its longitudinal direction, respectively, and an operation switch 24 is located on a side face of the display device 23. If the electronic clinical thermometer is grasped in an easy position for the operation of the operation switch, therefore, the display device 23 is almost hidden under the hand (including its fingers) and rendered unseeable. Further, the distance from the vibration generator 22 to the hand is so long that the vibration damps and ceases to be satisfactorily transmitted to the hand. If the clinical thermometer is grasped in a position that is susceptible to the vibration of the vibration generator 22, on the other hand, the display device 23 is situated behind the hand and rendered hardly seeable, and the operation switch 24 becomes hard to operate.
In the clinical thermometer described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-304189, as shown in FIG. 11, a display device 33 and a vibration generator 32 are arranged in front (on the side of a temperature measuring element 31) and in back with respect to its longitudinal direction, respectively, although the location of an operation switch is not described. In the clinical thermometer described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-136354, as shown in FIG. 12, a vibration generator 42 and a display device 43 are arranged in front (on the side of a temperature measuring element 41) and in back with respect to its longitudinal direction, respectively, although the location of an operation switch is not described either.